OETKB

I picked 3rd place as my honest guess, although anything can happen at this point in the season on "neutral" ice. One game at a time. Play a high energy game vs. Duluth, pepper their goalie again, and win this time. We'll see from there.

Anyone else impressed with Jake's interview after Sunday's game? He is probably the most articulate member of the Sioux team. Obviously he is an intelligent and fiery guy. His comments included a statement that "This is the best time of year to play hockey." He is having fun out there and does not sound intimidated. Go Sioux. Revenge is sweet - clobber Duluth!

JK: At the risk of tickin' you off... I think it is great that Grand Forks has bought the entire lower bowl and a few sections of the upper bowl = 5,500 packages sold so far for the WJC. Two of those packages were for me & my fiance. That leaves 5,498 for which I'm proud of the rest of you. At least we know the games will not be overrun by Canadians. Sheppard is an ass! Sioux need to play through his little personal agenda and win this one.

I'm willing to face facts that this could be it for the season, so I'm sipping on some really good beer and am determined to enjoy listening to this game, no matter what happens. Fight on Sioux!

That, my friend, is a given.

We all know this season has been very strange, and that can affect the coaches as much as the players. However, I find the following thing ironic about comments Blais has made lately: "I think we are playing our best hockey right now." was in Friday's Herald. Um, lets see...every time he says that, the team stinks up the ice. The last I remember hearing that was right before travelling to CC. "I'm not real optimistic." were his comments after losing to Duluth. I didn't hear his postgame comments last night, but apparently they were similar. What's up with that? The Dean Blais of 8 years ago would never be making comments like that. Thoughts?

Good Lord! It sure would be nice to get some friggin' goaltending. Also, what's up with our top line looking like they can't complete a pass? Very sloppy and ugly game. Totally disappointing. Season's going nowhere unless they do a complete 180 for tomorrow and, now, Sunday.

Dagies: Looks like you had a productive day! Wish I were there tonight. The beer garden is sounding pretty good right now. Those of you fortunate enough to be there...cheer loudly. Go Sioux.

Firstly, I'm surprised Blais did not mention Sedevie. Was that just an oversight? Next, the fact that Ziggy is coming is a pleasant surprise. It will be a first to have two G.F. goalies on the roster, right? I'm thinking the goaltending situation next season will be more solid. Perhaps Ziggy will be good enough to take over. If not, Brandt or Ranfranz will continue to mature. Lastly, thanks, as always, for posting the summary!

Saturday's game vs UW: Saw this one, too. UND again looked confident and moved the puck very well. There were a few times they got trapped in their defensive zone, but very rarely, and not for long. Wisconsin had only 3 or 4 good chances to score, just like Friday. On the other end, UND had at least a dozen good scoring chances, 5 of which became goals. It was very good to see UND break out of the scoring slump with back-to-back 5 goal games. If they can put up those numbers against Denver, they will win. Of course, DU has great goaltending. So...can a team with only 5 upperclassmen playing regularly make a run in the playoffs? That would be impressive, with excellent implications for the future. We shall see how things go this weekend.

Some thoughts about last night's game: Spiewak looked very poised on the PP. On his second goal, he really waited for a nice screen to develop before taking the shot. Defense, in general, looked extra-solid. Except for some funny bounces, Wisco did not get many scoring opportunities. Perhaps they are finally adjusting to the idea that D. Hale will not be back. We've got some excellent young defensemen - big & strong, but also fast on their skates. This was the first game in a while I'd seen (rather than just listened-to). UND looked like a very talented & well-coached team last night. Playoff calibur performance. Was it because they were taking on Wisco, or have they finally turned the corner?

Sioux played a pretty strong game today, but again are left wineless due to some recent weaknesses. In goal, if they get a strong game, the opposition's goaltender is stronger and UND fails to score. Defense: In the absence of D. Hale, the confidence in our defensive corps has evaporated. Yes, they are providing less shots on net than the opposition, but where are the hits and blocked shots? Offense: While it was nice to see players like Lundbohm, Massen & Notermann get goals today, where the heck are Bochenski & Parise? for that matter, why can't UND buy a rebound chance lately? Are we simply an odd-man-rush team, now? Is there no abundance of second-chances due to cycling the puck like there should be? We shall see. I, for one, believe that the intrinsic talent of this team is excellent. I hope, however, that we will not have to wait until next season to see it come to light.

An honest (probably too honest) assesment: Sioux offense gets lots of shots, but can't get a rebound goal to save their lives. Sioux goaltending is as mediocre as people have been ripping them about. Sioux defense is not the same without David Hale, who Blais proclaimed recently as "The best player on the team" Conclusion: If D. Hale does not recover, and the Sioux offense can't score some rebound goals, they will have an early exit to the season. Anyone who cannot see that right now is not looking at the facts of late.

Blais' post-game comments: Shots = good effort, but "big guns" can't seem to score. Not generating many second-efforts around the net. "Can't remember the last time Bochenski or Parise made a great play and scored"... they've made great plays, but haven't capitalized. Blais is afraid of "losing" his players if things don't turn around soon. Notes that there are a lot of "pissed off" players, right now.

At the risk of being hammered by the Sioux faithful...what is happening this season? Blais, in the past, has been able to improve his teams over the course of the season. This season, by contrast, they seem to be imploding at the end of the season, despite whatever offensive shot efforts they can muster. Thoughts?

9 games with 1 win, despite the peppering UND gave Duluth today. It just doesn't seem right.

Getting really tired of the "Goaltender is playing great" thing!

Bochenski gets robbed again on a chance that Tim says he would make "7 out 10 times".

Tim & Craig making a LOT of comments about how similar this game is to the last two weeks.

Shots now 27-14 and crowd starting to get into the game again, but score, of course, still 3-3.

"Another brilliant save on Parise, who can't buy a goal lately" = Tim's latest comment.

Despite the sellout crowd today, the commentators are saying the Sioux need more help from the crowd, who are non-existant on the audio feed.

Bochenski misses yet another chance. The guy can't buy a goal lately.

About 15 min. to play. Shots 21-14, yet it's a 3-3 game. What is going on with the Sioux?

Agreed. Sioux need to bury some chances, which has been a problem lately. Sioux are outshooting Duluth nearly 2-1, yet lead by just a goal going into the 3rd. Sioux need to take advantage on offense. Come on boys, you guys know you are more talented than most of the teams you play against, youth not withstanding. Time to prove it again!